


That Would Be Enough

by DoreyG



Category: The Turner Series - Cat Sebastian
Genre: Confessions, F/M, Getting Back Together, Post-Canon, Requited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-14
Updated: 2018-02-14
Packaged: 2019-03-11 12:10:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,292
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13523976
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DoreyG/pseuds/DoreyG
Summary: "Blackmail," he said.





	That Would Be Enough

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Jain](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jain/gifts).



"Blackmail," he said.

"Yes," she said, and took a deep breath to steady herself. While she agreed with her mother's advice in _principle_ ('Just _tell_ him already, Lydia. What harm can it do now!') The reality of it, facing her poor deceived husband across their bedroom, was somewhat more terrifying, "you see... Have you read the letters?"

"Yes," Francis said, a little too quickly. And then, to her complete surprise, blushed a blotchy shade of red that she hadn't seen from him since their far too brief courtship, "I mean, um, I may have glanced? Sorry. I just saw a, er, rather rude word and-"

"It's alright," she tried to soothe him, secretly flattered that - even after the awkward years since their wedding, even after the whole business with those letters, even after _everything_ \- he'd still be guilty about invading her privacy, "it's actually easier to explain that way, to be honest. You see, my former- er, well, former informally promised to man wasn't actually that nice a person."

Francis remained silent for a long few seconds, obviously thinking it over. He looked a little like he'd just been smacked in the head with a croquet mallet, as if a sudden realization had been dropped on his head out of nowhere, but she charitably decided not to pay too much attention to that, "you didn't think he was a nice person?"

"That is what I just said, yes," she said slowly, and also charitably held herself back from giving him a strange look for the unneeded repetition, "he was crude, ruthless and simply the most entitled person I have ever met. I still remember that horrible way he had of looking at me, like he was stripping me with his eyes. It was _awful_."

"It..." Francis continued to look like he'd been hit with a croquet mallet for a long few seconds. Then visibly shook himself, finally focused on her again with those wonderfully concerned eyes that she'd been so attracted to from the start, "it sounds it. Lydia- my darling Lydia, I'm so _sorry_."

She blinked, blinked again. Had to spread her feet to ground herself, before she could summon enough brainpower to respond, "what for?"

"That it was allowed to happen." He reached out for her abortively, deliberately drew himself back as if he wasn't sure his touch would be welcomed, "that I believed... That I believed you allowed it to happen, that you welcomed his attentions and kept the letters out of some tender feeling."

"Francis," she said, surprised to find herself choked up. Reached out, reached firmly across the gap that had been between them for so long, and took his hand between hers, "it's alright."

"It's-" he started, actively _clinging_ to her.

"It's _alright_ ," she interrupted him, firmer this time. Maybe it was the feeling of his hand finally back in hers after all this time, finally back where it _belonged_ , "I don't know what I would've thought, had I found borderline pornographic letters from a former paramour of yours fondly kept. I think I may well have thought exactly the same thing as you."

Francis stared silently at her for several long moments. She was surprised to find that his eyes were wet, "I don't know how you can be so forgiving."

"I'm not, to anybody but you," she said wryly, stepped a little closer so she could lay her forehead against his and bask in the renewed connection between them, "I think this whole business with Lewis rather proves that, don't you?"

"I think that snake deserves no form of forgiveness." Francis sniffed, and she felt almost capable of flying at the protective scorn in his tone, "but, Lydia... It seems I know you far better than I thought, over the past few years. I can't believe you kept those letters just out of spite, to make life a little awkward for that brute. He would've deserved it, you would've been doing the world a favour by humbling him in my opinion, but-"

"But?" She asked, still slightly dazed.

"It's not _you_ , Lydia."

"I guess not." She laughed, a touch shakily, Basked in the warmth of his regard a few moments more before continuing, "you're going to think me foolish, possibly in the extreme, but... I was worried."

He frowned at her gently for a second, as if trying to figure out a puzzle that she had handed to him quite suddenly, "why would I think you were foolish for being worried?"

"I wasn't worried for myself," she admitted, with the slightest of shrugs, "I was out of it, far from Yorkshire and away from his grasp. But... Other women weren't so lucky. There are quite a few young women in Yorkshire, after all, and not all of them had the opportunity to-"

"Escape?" Francis asked, tone softly resigned as if he still expected all his obvious adoration to be thrown back in his face.

"Find their prince charming," she corrected him firmly, and briefly wondered if she'd ever grow tired of making his face - his gorgeous, handsome, safe _face_ \- light up with joy like a sunrise, "some of them were stuck, and the thought of others being trapped like I almost was tormented me. When I heard from my mother that he'd married I finally saw a way to ease that torment, just a little."

"A way to protect someone," Francis said slowly, looking down at her with something close to wonder, "like you had never been protected."

"I do love the way you have of making one's basest actions sound admirable," she said wryly, but couldn't stop herself from basking in that a little too, "It was selfish, and stupid, and possibly ineffective. But I wrote to him, informed him that I had kept the letters for such a purpose and told him that if he ever harmed a hair on that woman's head I would make sure the whole wide world knew what he truly was."

"An avenging angel," he said, staring at her with an admiration that seemed to grow by the minute, "a being of fire and justice, come to strike fear into the hearts of wrongdoers."

"A blackmailer," she corrected him, brought back to the start of their conversation with a faint jolt. A pleasurable jolt, at how well it'd gone against all her expectations, "a criminal, who allowed her wondrous husband to believe he wasn't loved just because she was too scared to trust him with the true depth of her regard."

"If I'd been through what you'd been through, I'd be a little slow to trust too," he said, carefully brushed back some of her hair to press a kiss against her forehead, "I... I'm glad you told me. I'm just sorry, that I didn't make you feel safe enough to trust me until now. I'm sorry that I assumed things. And I'm sorry, that you had to go through so much to receive so little."

"Oh, Francis." She sighed, clung harder to him before he tried to pull away, "the fault was with both of us. Furthermore, I forgive you. _Furthermore_ , didn't you hear what I just said about the true depth of my regard?"

"...The true depth?" He asked, looking happily stunned.

"I love you, my saviour. With all my heart, all my body and all my soul. You are the light of my life, the best thing that has ever happened to me." She smiled, leaned back to look him straight in the eye, "and, if you can learn to love a blackmailing criminal again..."

"I never stopped," he interrupted her, this time. And as their mouths finally pressed together again, she knew in her heart that she'd never felt so happy or safe.


End file.
